The aspects of the disclosed embodiments relate to a method and device for the disposal of animal waste, and in particular to providing a method and device that is economical, hygienic, and environmentally sound.
In the US, it is estimated that almost 2 in five households have a dog. This essentially means that there are 62 million dogs in the US alone. It is common now for canine laws around the world to impose significant fines for improper disposal, or lack of disposal of dog waste. Clearly then, animal waste and the problems caused by improper disposal are of great importance to a household, town, or city on a private or public basis.
Various methods have been advocated for the gathering of animal waste within a domestic or public environment, most commonly the ‘scooper’, ‘grabber’, or ‘bagging’ type devices (see list 1 for Patent References). Once the waste has been gathered, it must be disposed of in a clean an efficient manner, commonly it is thrown in a designated animal waste bin, domestic refuse bin, buried, placed in a biodegradable or decomposition system, burnt, or flushed into a domestic waste system via a household toilet, or via an external animal waste removal and/or flushing type device.
There are numerous problems with these methods:
The problem with placing the animal waste that has been collected within a domestic setting, using a ‘scooper’, or ‘grabber’ type device, then placed directly into a domestic refuse bin is that the odour of the animal waste will permeate throughout the domestic refuse bin causing an unpleasant odour in the region surrounding the domestic refuse bin.
If the animal waste has been gathered and contained using a ‘bagging’ type device when the animal has been out on a walk or simply gathered from within a domestic environment, if the bag is not made from a biodegradable material, it can increase the environmental cost and also the general financial cost of having to put the bin out for collection on a more frequent basis due to the increased build-up of animal waste and to the unpleasant permeating odours.
Furthermore, there are problems associated with flushing the disposable bags down domestic toilets as animal owners may not want to risk blocking their internal household plumbing network. As a result, the next option is to bury the waste or place the animal waste in private biodegradable or decomposition systems.
The problem with burying the animal waste or placing the animal waste in a biodegradable, or decomposition system is that these solutions require an outdoor space which is not used for other purposes. Furthermore, these solutions are time consuming and more unpleasant, in particular, burying the animal waste on every occasion is very time consuming and laboursome. There may also be unpleasant odours associated with the use of biodegradable and decomposition systems as it takes time for the animal waste to break down. There is also a significant cost related to the installation, use, and up-keep of these private biodegradable and decomposition systems.
A further solution that has been employed in the past is to install a branched ‘Y’ shaped fitting to an existing external waste downpipe. The main problem with this is that almost all waste down pipes in American homes are internal, which suggests that this system only provides a solution for domestics homes in countries such as the UK where external waste downpipes are commonplace. On the off-chance that an external waste downpipe does exist, a further problem with this system is that the fitting requires a four inch screw cap which is cumbersome to use as the opening is simply too small to allow most ‘scoopers’ or ‘grabber’ type devices to cleanly release the animal waste directly into the opening. The only suitable way to use this system therefore, is for the owner to gather the animal waste using a biodegradable bag, and then place their hand directly into the waste pipe, which is connected directly to a sewer waste removal downpipe. To do this is quite unhygienic. This solution also requires that you to manually flush the pipe after use in order to ensure the animal waste has indeed progressed in to the main flow waste pipe, and not simply resting within the ‘Y’ connection pipe.
Animal waste may also be burnt or incinerated, but as these methods require an apparatus to incinerate the animal waste, the financial cost of these devices is high. Furthermore, after incineration, the ashes must still be disposed of in an appropriate manner, making the whole process costly and laboursome.
There is a further solution which essentially provides a toilet facility for the animal. That is, the animal excretes waste which is then, in varying ways, directed into a general household waste sewer system by varying methods including flushing, levering, and conveyer belt. The problem with these methods is that directing the animal waste is awkward at best, and for the most part would realistically rely on the use of more basic apparatus; commonly the ‘scooper’, ‘grabber’, or ‘bagging’ type devices to complete the procedure. Further problems would include that the animal has to be trained to excrete its' waste in a fairly precise designated spot which will take quite a lot of time, and for most dog owners is unrealistic and far too time consuming. All of these products are cumbersome and complicated in design which increases their financial cost.
Finally, on a commercial or municipal level, the only current solution is to provide bins for the depositing of animal waste. These bins for the most part only recommend that the animal waste be deposited within a suitable biodegradable bag. Therein lies the first problem, because the bin is not continually controlled, any type of rubbish may be deposited. Further, there is a relatively high cost for commercial entities and local authorities to provide bins specifically for animal waste disposal, and to dispose of the waste in an environmentally acceptable way. These bins must be regularly emptied in order to obviate any hygiene concerns and/or unpleasant odours that may otherwise emanate from the bins if they are left unemptied for a long period of time.
Furthermore, each of the bins must be maintained by regular cleaning which is costly and time consuming. As a consequence, the financial burden of installing and maintaining public animal waste disposal bins has been found to be costly and time consuming.
As a consequence, the number of animal waste bins provided by local authorities is relatively low, and commercially is non-existent. Quite often if an animal owner has collected the waste it is likely that there is no animal waste bin nearby. Thus, the animal owner is forced to carry around the animal waste in a disposable bag on their person until they have an opportunity to dispose of the bag in a private domestic bin or by other means. This is unsatisfactory as it is unpleasant for the animal owner to be carrying around the animal waste on their person for any period of time.
Clearly then, it is quite obvious that there is a need for a simple, clean, cost effective, and environmentally sound system to enable the depositing of animal waste in private domestic environments, public and commercial environments alike. It is the goal of this invention to provide an apparatus and method that overcomes at least one of the afore mentioned problems.